One Purpose, One Hope, One Community, One Result
Why One Hope?
The Reason: What we have done so far, although good, has yet to truly and totally transform our community.
For example, 90% of most local church’s energy, time and finances are spent inside its building and on people already reached. Nearly every fast-growing church in our area is growing primarily by transfers from other local churches. Pastors are frustrated. Church members are discouraged. And, more importantly, while 90% of a church’s time, treasures and talents are spent on its one location on Sunday morning, 75% of the region’s inhabitants have no personal committed relationship with any church.
For example, educational entities are stretched beyond their resources to be able to handle the family issues so many are struggling with. They need partners who with no strings attached will help create stronger family units so that education can remain a school’s prime priority.
For example, businesses want to do more than simply 
throw money toward more fund-raisers. They desire their employees to be connected to the community making a significant difference with their lives as a representative of their business.
For example, non-profits often duplicate community resources, feel alienated from other non-profits and truly desire to see lasting change occur in their area of influence. They need strategic partnerships which actually do something to produce that kind of community transformation.
Something has to change. It is time. Let’s start a movement together!
The Response: Launched in January 2011, One Hope connects area churches, businesses, educational entities, non-profits and individuals in a movement of spiritual, economic, family, financial and educational community transformation.
One Hope is a:
• Movement: It is a grassroots movement unencumbered by organizational or denominational barriers. One Hope is not another “network”, “pastor’s group”, or “social service” entity. It is a movement which is actually moving!
• Non-profit: The Directors and board members of One Hope are all volunteers.
• Missional Partnership: Those who work together in community transformation “are” One Hope. Its connection is purely relational. There is nothing to join. You simply participate together with others in transforming our community into a better place to live, work and play.
• Organism: One Hope is organized around three critical components: Hub, Hope Center, and Hands-on
• Mobile: One Hope places “Hubs” and “Hope Centers” everywhere by pouring people onto the front lines of community transformation right here where they live!
The Reality:
For Churches: 75% of the people in your area will never regularly attend or ever walk through the door of your church even with the best music, marketing efforts or special events. But place “church” on-site where people live and the barriers are lowered and expansion becomes encouraging! People will gather where they live with people they already know.
For non-profits: 90% of the community does not understand who you are, what you do, what you have to offer or how they could help you if interested. One Hope is a network of supportive relationships that clearly and compellingly showcases the fine community work you do and also offers an easy to navigate portal through which additional volunteers can serve in your cause.
For Businesses: Word of mouth sells your goods and services. As thousands of local residents participate at some level in One Hope, your business becomes a talked about place for others to purchase from.
For Educational Entities: Education promotes people to a higher standard of living, provides a greater satisfaction with their lives and produces a deeper sense of our global community. One Hope gives you a market to recruit students in order to provide them with the stepping stones they need to get ahead. Others of you have community service requirements. One Hope offers dozens of creative outlets for fulfilling those requirements.
For Schools: Utilizing the benefits of Bags of Love, Uni-fest and Christmas Extravaganza, schools benefit from the assistance of school supplies, feeding resources, tutoring volunteers and items for needy students at Christmas (coats, gloves, etc.)
The Results
What One Hope has accomplished in its first year by working together
Bags of Love:
This hands-on feeding program provides easy to prepare food for a child each weekend. Starting In August 2010 with one school and feeding 20 children we are currently working with 20 schools feeding over 300 children weekly.
Coats of Love:
This winter mission provides coats, mittens, and hats to school-age children during the winter months
Christmas Extravaganza:
Christmas can be tough on financially-strapped families. One Hope gathers toys, food and clothing and takes it on-site where children live during the Christmas holidays
Mobile Trucks:
Box trucks are transformed into mobile food, clothing and household items and driven to area apartment complexes and neighborhoods where items are freely distributed to those in need right where they live.
Kid’s Explosion:
This high energy, hands-on weekly character-building time takes a 45 minute spiritually focused program for 5-12 year olds into high-density areas each week. We have expanded from 1 to 5 locations in the last five months reaching nearly 100 children weekly.
Hope Centers: These on-site “points of light” are led by local residents who weekly gather people together in a neighborhood, townhouse community or apartment complex for a time of hope-infusion, practical teaching and relational connection.
Uni-Fest:
This event brings together the entire community each August for an afternoon of food, fun, music, free school bookbags, clothing, medical check-ups, job fair and more. Every year thousands of people attend Uni-Fest from across the region. Over 1,000 bookbags were given away this year at Uni-Fest!
One Hope School of Ministry and Missions: This in-depth training program offers family courses in marriage, parenting, singles and finance as well as biblical courses, ministry training for lay leaders as well as accredited classes/courses for pastors and pastors-in-training. It works with community leaders to provide leadership training for new and existing local leaders in order to maximize their effectiveness and increase their influence.
Family Ministries: One Hope places Recovery groups, counseling, and financial training on-site where people live, work and play.
Explore One Hope and then join together with others who are doing more than talking about the needs of their community: they are working together to meet and solve the issues their community faces every day.
Ron Larson
One Hope Director